Canon Bars Third-Party Lenses for Mirrorless

While third party lens manufacturers like Sigma and Tamron have been enthusiastically increasing their line-up of lenses for mirrorless cameras, Canon has explicitly told third party manufacturers to stop producing RF mount products, according to published reports from independent media sources.

A PetaPixel report, quoting a Viltrox representative, says that Canon has directed the company to stop producing all RF mount products. The publication also reports Canon’s confirmation that it did so for violations of patents. Viltrox has since stopped selling all RF-mount products. Photografix Magazine, Germany, also reports Canon Germany’s confirmation that it issued a “cease and desist” order to third-party lens manufacturers for violating its patents.

It has to be noted that these companies produced AF capable RF lenses through reverse engineering, since Canon does not currently license its RF mount to any third-party manufacturer. In fact, Canon is the only leading camera manufacturer that does not allow third party lens manufacturers from producing lenses for their mirrorless camera mount.

In our opinion, this strategy might prove counterproductive in a price-conscious market like India, especially when the global chip shortage and the fear of an economic slowdown continue to threaten equipment deliveries across the world. For now, Canon users have no choice, but to lock themselves into the relatively high-priced options in the manufacturer’s inventory.